Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Yes, I watched [and liked] Bring It On. So sue me - I can't help it if I secretly wanted to be a high-flying, back-flipping, banana split-doing petite barbie doll clad in a shortflouncyskirt and hideoustennisshoes. Isn't that something that every girl wanted at some point in their childhood?

Too bad for me, though. Instead I'm a giant who can't even do a cartwheel without falling on my butt. Ah, such is life. I would say something like, "At least I can reach stuff on the top shelf," but have you seen those girls jump? They're like little super humanflying ninja monkeys [they can kick really high, too].

I don't know how I just did an entire post on cheerleaders... because I totally didn't mean to. But I did, and dang it, you are going to like it [okay, you don't have to]!

Anyway, hope you all are having a fabulous day, and in honor of my cheerleading post, I'm just going to show you a bunch of pictures of stuff I wish I could do [not limited to being a super human flying ninja monkey].

So I guess this would be.... "Oh-ee-oh-ee-oh.... How Pinteresting." <--see how clever I am?!

We all know that I wish I was a ballerina.

I also wish I could be Belle at Disneyland, but according to Ali, they have height requirements, and I'm too tall. Ummm isn't that what affirmative action is for? I say down with tall person discrimination!!

I would LOVE to be on Broadway. Too bad I'm no Kristin Chenoweth.

I also wish I could channel my inner wangsta and learn to hip hop.

Scuba diving would be amazeballs.

Wish I could play for the Huskers. No, I am not a 12-year-old boy... Thanks for asking.

Anyway, just thought I would take the time to shout out to the rest of my lovely sponsors who have not yet been featured. As always... click the pics!

my blog started out as a way to keep in touch with my college friends when we were apart. today my blog is my daily journal since i am too lazy to actually write in a physical journal. i blog just about everything and anything - my love for music, my religion, friends, crafting, my job, my travels, my heartaches, my triumphs, and what i'm going through. i also love the fact that i don't have to be gramatically correct. i've found a style that's all mine. i have met a lot of great ladies who inspire me to be better and that make me feel better about things in my daily life.

Who is that in your photo, and why do you love them?

the person in my photo is my dear brother, Allen. he recently returned home from serving an LDS mission (Baltic Mission). We have been best friends since i can remember. he is a strength to me and a great example of virtue, honesty, hard work, and a comedian. we always have a good time when we hang out. i love my brother and look up to him so very much.

My name is Sarah. I am the one behind The Fontenot Four! I am in love with God, my husband {Ron}, and my girls {Moira and Peyton}. I am a stay a home mom of two girls (7 and 5), the younger of which is special needs and is medically fragile. I started The Fontenot Four as an outlet for me to write about the blessings in my life. The good stuff. Nothing negative. I figured if I focused on the positive for a change, it might really help me work through life's challenges. I decided somewhere along the way that I could really use my blog to help people. I love to blog about the blessings in my life, my faith, the occasional book review, recipes from time to time, musings about my family, and so on. I also have a little knitting shop on Etsy!

Who is that in your photo, and why do you love them?

My husband and I have been married for almost 12 years. In that time we've gone through many many trials that a lot of couples never have to face - and some that a lot do. He loves me unconditionally and he is an amazing husband, supporter, encourager, and father.

Hi I'm Meg and my blog is henning love in which I love to feature step by step recipes, especially baked goods, a little bit of my fashion sense, some DIYs and my life with my husband and our two dogs. I love to get to know friends through my blog and looking forward to getting to know some more friends through my sponsorship of Alyx's blog this month.

Who is that in your photo, and why do you love them?

The photo is of my husband and I at a concert for his birthday last year. We have been married over 1.5 years and he is absolutely my best friend and who I love to be around more than anyone else. He is such a jokester, he makes my serious side of my personality lighten up and provides so much sunshine and laughter in my life.

Hello, readers of Alyx! I'm Haley Brianna and I blog over at Inspired Perspectives. I have an overwhelming addiction to photography and tend to carry three cameras with me at all times. I'm a teenage girl who adores Josh Turner and will end up marrying him despite his current relationship status.

One day, when I'm famous and become his new wife, you will be glad you stopped by my blog because then you can say I'm your friend and whatnot. I love the color yellow. Because that color describes my personality exceptionally well. I am a retired ice skater (just kidding, not retired, but.. I was forced to quit). I work at a gas station because that's definitely something to brag about, right?

Monday, February 27, 2012

Wow. It's been Six months since I started this blog. I had a "blog" before from a couple years ago, but it had like, 3 posts and no followers. I decided to give it another go and created this little gem.

I thought I'd show you how it's "grown up" over the months before anything else...

As you can see, it took some name changes and learning about designing to get to where it is now, but I think I'm happy with it.

I can tell you what I've learned about myself in the past 6 months.

1. I love to write, and I have a very unique writing style. I used to be really self-conscious about it, especially in my upper level English classes. Other people were using huge words and trying to sound as intelligent as possible, and then here I was - writing the way I talk, translating my exact self onto the paper. I've grown to love my writing style now, though, because it's different. It's not better, and it's not worse - it's different.

2. I LOVE to do design. Oh my gosh. Seriously. I never would have learned Photoshop and other Adobe products without this blog. I love it so much that it's hard for me to step away from the computer while I'm working on a blog design. I'm in the middle of a blog right now for someone who just went on a 3 week trip, and it's killing me to just leave her blog there unfinished!

3. I love the friendships that I have made. There are so many wonderful people out there, and I'm so glad that I've "met" all of you through this blog. I'm glad for the Skype "double" dates that we have with Aliand her husband. I'm glad for the real-life game nights that we have had with Daryland her husband. I'm glad for all of the wonderful emails that I get from readers on a daily basis, and the friendships that have stemmed from those.

4. I have a weird thing about lists of five. Never would have known that if I didn't start blogging.

5. I apparently have lots of other weird things that I do. Most of which have been made public on the blog.

Saturday, February 25, 2012

Heeeyyyyyy you guys!!!! <-- Goonies, anyone? I know I've used that greeting before, but lemme tell ya - it's so hard to come up with new ones. Seriously.

Anyway, it's Sunday! That means it's time for those confessions, so link up and tell your ridiculous secrets to the world.

1. I'm addicted to Words with Friends. I also find it hilarious to play words like "titty," "hooters," and "pee." I've had this app on my iPhone since forever... but just got into it. I think I was inspired by McKenzie's addiction. Psst... start a game with me: AlyxGarner

2. I found another way to enjoy Nutella. Okay, two more ways to enjoy it. I can eat it on my pretzels (yum!), or I can stuff my french toast with it (thanks to Sabrina for sending me every Nutella recipe she finds).

3. I have no clue what to do with my life now that I'm done with the Hunger Games. I have gotten some good book recommendations from people, I just need to sit down and figure out where to start next!

4. I slept in until 2:30 p.m. 3 times last week. Yeah, you wish you had a life as lazy as mine. I also spent two entire days in my pajamas.

5. I may or may not be catching the fever... baby fever. Shhh... I don't want to talk about it - I'm in denial. But seriously... look at this random cute baby that I found in Google by searching "cute baby..." isn't it cute??

WARNING: This post contains spoilers. If you have not yet read The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, or Mockingjay, go to your local library and check them out, or go here, here, and here and order yourself the ebooks. If you have a Kindle and Amazon Prime, you can read the ebooks for free. Simply not reading these books is not an option.

[Insert District 12 Salute here.]<--yeah, I know I did that last time, but I'm a nerd, and I look so frickin' cool doing that in my brain. I'd probably look stupid if I did it in real life, which is why you get a picture of Katniss doing it, and not a vlog of me.

Anyway. Husband and I stayed up all night last night. Get yo mind out of the gutter. We were reading (and I was working on a blog design that I can't wait to show you all). We weren't just reading any ole books, though... we were finishing book 3 of the Hunger Games series. He was reading Mockingjay, I was reading "Flaming Rage" as it is so eloquently called in German.

Since we read it at the same time, I thought it would be interesting to do a joint blog post with my oh so sexy husband on how we felt about the book. You're welcome.

Mike's Thoughts:

Katniss, get out of the freaking hospital and go talk to somebody. You're gonna turn into a drug addict.

Oh, and at the end, I didn't like the whole "being burned by fire" thing and not actually winning the war. The rebels did it all. It would have been way better if she'd watched Prim die and then gone all hardcore and killed everyone in the mansion, including the president.

I mean, if Prim has to die, anyway. I don't think she should have died.

I think Gale should have died. But... not when he got captured. He shouldn't have gotten captured. He should have died protecting Katniss from the fire bombs or something, enabling her to go to President Snow.

Oh, and Katniss is a whiny little girl - she didn't really seem like a very good symbol for the Rebellion.

I was really hoping the truth about Coin would come out in the trial, and that she'd be exonerated for the right reasons instead of being insane. Then she'd be a hero instead of some lunatic who only wants to kill herself.

All that being said, I was ultimately happy with the ending and happy that she got together with Peeta - I just didn't like how she arrived there.

My Thoughts:

(first of all....) Ditto everything Mike said.

WHAT THE EFF! WHY DID FINNICK HAVE TO DIE?!

WHAT THE EFF?! WHY DIDN'T THEY TELL THE TRUTH ABOUT COIN?

Okay, FINALLY Katniss and Peeta are together. WHY THE EFF DID IT TAKE THIS LONG?!?

HOLY CRAP. SHE KILLED COIN INSTEAD OF SNOW!

Gale, I still don't like you.

Snow, you're a dirt bag.

HOLY CRAP. Those "Mutations" (I don't know what they're called in the English book) are frickin' terrifying.

Katniss - quit being all depressed and stuff.

NOOOOO PRIM!!!!! WHY DID SHE HAVE TO DIE?!

What the eff? One second Katniss is all hardcore and about to save the day, the next second she's in a drugged up stupor dreaming of dead people? Not a fan of that transition. Not a fan at all.

FINALLY. My life is complete - Peeta and Katniss are together.

Some of my Twitter thoughts from while I was reading:

Phew, Peeta is still alive. My life is now complete.

SAY WHAT?!?!?!? District 13, what the eff...

I'm on chapter 4, and so far... these people are freakin' crazy.

can someone with a british accent please do a vlog? I love british accents! (wait, that's not about Hunger Games, I just really want someone to do it...)

OMG PEETA!!! WHAT THE EFF. I WAIT FOR YOU ALL THIS TIME AND NOW YOU TRY TO CHOKE KATNISS?!?!? WHAT THE EFF, WHAT THE EFF!!!

I am seriously about to cry for peeta. Poor guy is off his rocker.

Katniss, you stupid skank. Gale is not for you, so quit makin' out with him just to get some. SHEESH.

ohmygosh. If Peeta and Katniss don't work this thing out, I am gonna be PISSED. Seriously. KATNISS, JUST ADMIT THAT YOU LOVE HIM!

As you can see... I'm a little more... expressive than Mike. He actually got mad at me because I was ahead of him and would randomly shout things like, "WHAT THE HECK?!" and "SERIOUSLY?!" and "OHMYGOSH!"

Have you guys read the series? How did you feel about the way it ended?

Friday, February 24, 2012

TGIF. No, seriously. Thank frickin' goodness it's Friday. This week just seemed to drag by for me. I'm so happy it's the weekend!

As you know.. Friday always brings along a sweet little list of my favorite things. This week, I'm going to do a blogger edition.

1. Gentri Lee's interpretation of Effie Trinket from The Hunger Games. Seriously! Gentri just started Esthetician classes, and she's already pretty amazing. Just look at the makeup she did as she interpreted Effie Trinket. So cool, right?

Oh, and just to add to the awesome-ness... she recently started doing a Friday feature where she shares some of the cool stuff she's learned at school. Like... about waxing her nose and that fun stuff.

2. Anything from Erin at Living in Yellow. Guys... I don't know if you follow Erin, but if you don't... you probably should. I almost always leave her blog chuckling to myself. Plus, it helps that she's a fellow mac'n'cheese lover.

3. Cecilia's toucan shoes. Now... I only follow like, 2 fashion blogs (mostly because I have no hope of ever being as fashionable as those people, so I choose to just give it up), but you know I love me a good pair of shoes. shoes = my drug. So when I saw these puppies on Dearest Lou, I was smitten.

4. This post by mah friend B. at Different Paths, Same Destination. Okay, so you may have guessed that I am pretty passionate about loving the skin you're in. Hadn't guessed that? Oh, well... now you know. I'm not going to rant about it right now - I'll save you. I don't really have a picture... you just need to read it, because it's that good.

5. The new "Pass it Forward" project by Ashley. You guys remember the movie Pay It Forward? Well, that's what this project reminds me of. It's such a cool idea. It's a simple way to brighten somebody's day (and maybe make you feel a little better in the process). There's this new website, www.spreadtheshine.com, and, according to Ashley, this is how it works:

Pass it Forward is designed around a card. Each card is given a unique ID number. Lets say we're at McDonalds, and I decide to pay for the person behind me in the drive through. I'd give the cashier the card, and tell them to pass it along to the next car when the give them the food that has been paid for. I then go home and log into the website that was on the card, and find my unique ID number. I log into it, and add my information... My first name, city, and a description of what I did....

Let's say the person behind me was you, you would pass it forward to someone else, and then would go home and do the same thing. From the very beginning, you will be able to track where your card goes, and how many people you affect just by doing one simple act of kindness.

This is what the card looks like, so be on the lookout for one of these puppies:

So... there you go! Those are a few of my favorite things from the blogging world this week.

Thursday, February 23, 2012

So... if you follow me on twitter, you would know that inspiration has not reared its pretty little head in a while, so I decided to do awkward and awesome with a little bit of a twist.

You all know that I live in Germany. I also speak German. I like to consider myself fluent, but then I always wonder what fluent is. Obviously I don't speak German as well as I speak English. Duh. It's not my native language. I figure, though, that if I can read 600 page novels and watch movies and carry on conversations without any difficulty, then I must be fluent.

Anyway.

Awkward:

1. Reading books like The Hunger Games in German, and then discussing them in English. I don't know how to translate those made-up words.

2. Writing blog posts half in English, half in German. This happens quite a bit, people. I then have to go through and replace all the random German words that are dispersed throughout the post.

3. Sleep-talking in German. Apparently this happens.

4. Speaking Germenglish. This also happens. Quite a bit.

5. Going to other countries where they don't speak German or English, and automatically speaking German and expecting people to understand me. I guess since they're speaking a foreign language, my brain just automatically goes to the only foreign language I know. This happened in Italy - I'd ask, "Sprechen Sie Englisch?" People would say, "English, yes. German, no."

Awesome:

1. Reading books and understanding them. Ummm, how cool is this? I can look at a book in a totally different language, and understand it all!

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Let me tell you something about German eggs. They come in packages of ten (never 12), they sometimes come with feathers or dirt on them, and apparently they are sometimes disgusting and bloody. I am not okay with this. I don't think I'll be eating eggs for a few days.

I ordered some new stuff for my Gesicht ("face" in German). The wonderful and totally awesome Ali sells Avon, and I thought I'd give it a go. Maybe you remember my 99 cent German moisturizer mishap, maybe you don't. Basically, it made my forehead look like a pepperoni pizza for about a month. So... I ordered some new mild face wash to remove makeup and some moisturizer (that hopefully doesn't make your dog mistake me for his dinner).

German mail people are nosey-pants. I got my package with the Avon stuff in the mail today. It had been torn open and repackaged... in a plastic bag. At least it was all still there. No, German mail man, I am not smuggling drugs, thank you very much.

I have had the laziest week ever. I never work on Mondays, we had Tuesday off, I worked today, I have tomorrow off, and I work Friday. That's two days and approximately 5 hours of work, people. Go me.

Yesterday I was messing around with Photoshop, and thought I should enlighten you all. I am by no means an expert photo-shopper. I can, however, see that our society's visions of what is beautiful have been greatly influenced by the media - a media which relies VERY heavily on Photoshop. Let me show you a picture of Kiera Knightley (I think she has the most gorgeous face in the entire world, whether or not it's been photoshopped):

Okay, do you think she ACTUALLY looks like that? Heck nah. Don't believe that half of her beauty comes from Photoshop? Let me show you a real life example:

Yes, that is me. Photoshopped. This is what magazines do, people. I didn't even change my facial structure or make myself lose weight (which they also do). THIS IS RIDICULOUS. And we wonder why 10-year-olds are suffering from eating disorders and have major self-esteem issues.

Aloha! We finally saw some sunshine and warmer weather today. It helped my mood drastically, so 1,000,000 points for God for knowing just what I needed.

In other news... one of my students said something hilarious today, and I meant to write it down, but then I forgot, and so this is really a pointless story - I just wanted you all to know that I did have a funny story for you guys at one point.

In even more other news... I want some colored pants. I saw some in a store window today and they were beautiful. And beautifully out of my budget.

And... the moment you've all been waiting for, the giveaway winners are posted here. Hint: If your name is Courtney you won the necklace, and if your name is Alana you won the mascara (Alana - it was fate).

And now I bring you the wonderful Kassi from Truly Lovely with another giveaway!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://rafl.es/enable-js"&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;You need javascript enabled to see this giveaway&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;.

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

I just read a really awesome story over here that basically says that we should love what we do so much that when we don't have to think about anything, it is what we think about.

Well... that got me to thinking. As a lot of you may or may not know, I'm done with college. I graduated with bachelor's degrees in German and Economics. Throughout college, I bounced around a lot, [officially] changed my major at least five times, and, consequently, changed what I wanted to be when I "grew up" at least that many times.

All of a sudden, about a month ago, it dawned on me. I want to teach high school. When that idea first popped into my head, I may or may not have checked my forehead to make sure I wasn't completelydelirious and running a temperature of 105. I mean, who would willingly dive into the pool of psychotic, hormonal teenagers in the feeble attempts to teach them to love learning and knowledge? Umm, apparently me.

This experience has not been what I expected, and I've been kind of disappointed with they way it has gone, but the moral of the story is this: Even with how much this has not been the best experience of my life, I have learned a few things.

1. I want to teach English to a bunch of psychotic, hormonal teenagers. I want to discuss literature, I want to teach kids how to write essays, I want to teach them the importance of paragraphs and commas. It's what I want to do. Will I be a millionaire? No. Will I have days where I want to punch 17-year-olds in the face? Most likely. Those things don't really matter to me when I ask myself another question, though. Will I change or impact someone's life for the better? I sure hope so.

2. Being poor sucks. I have learned that we can not only survive, but live off of $1050 a month, with our rent, electric, tithing, and internet bills accounting for $900 of that. We can live off of $150 a month. I never thought that was possible, but I've been proven wrong. Do I ever want to be in this situation again. No. Not in a million years. Have I learned from it? You betcha.

3. My moods are deeply impacted by the weather and having friends. Guys, I've been in pretty much a deep depression since, oh... November. I've had breakdowns at least once a week, and I have lost all motivation to do anything. It's really hard for me to put out there, but there you have it. Anyone who knows me in real life would be shocked to know that I don't even want to exercise (that's one of my all-time favorite things to do... yeah, it's okay, you can call a sadist, or crazy, or whatever - I won't blame you). I think this depression has been spurred on by the craphole that is Europe when it comes to winter weather (6 days with sunshine since November), but it's also because I don't really have any accessible friends.

4. Being poor, in a foreign country, and in a tiny town really bring you closer to your spouse. I've spent more time with Michael in the past 6 months than I got to spend with him the entire first year of our marriage (I was in 18 hours both semesters, he worked as a traveling salesman).

5. I wouldn't trade this experience for anything. It has posed new challenges. I have seen myself deal with a problem that I never dreamed of having. I have learned the value of a dollar (or a euro, I guess).

I have FINALLY decided what I want to be when I "grow up."

Basically, I guess I'm saying that we should be happy, whatever we choose to be when we "grow up." And if you're worried that your career choice might disappoint someone... Think about this:

I know people might disagree with that, but when you're choosing your career, you want to be happy, or else you'll be miserable. If you're miserable, it's really hard for anyone around you not to be.

Monday, February 20, 2012

Reh-roh!! That's me greeting you like Scooby Doo would if he was on my blog today. I thought it was only appropriate, because today I'm going to talk about dogs.

NO! Don't run away yet. There's a story behind this random blog topic. And I know, I know... I need to stop posting twice in the same day.

So. The other day, I was talking to my mom on Skype, and she was telling me a story about these little rascals.

My parents' backyard is fenced in, so naturally they let the dogs out back to run and play. One day (I think it was sometime last week), however, my mom heard Milo (he's the bigger dog) whining and barking. She went outside to find Milo next to a huge hole whining. Sparky (the smaller dog) was nowhere to be found.

Apparently this was not the first time that this has happened, and that is what has prompted me to talk about a very serious topic:

Doggy Conspiracy Theories.

I promise you, dogs can talk to each other. I mean, really. I am absolutely convinced that Sparky somehow coerces Milo into digging holes for him so that he can escape the backyard. Now, I'm not sure what he promises Milo in return, but it's gotta be something good, because Milo digs the stupid hole for him time and time again, even though Sparky always leaves him behind and goes off on his own adventures. Maybe he promises Milo more treats, maybe he lets him eat more dog food, maybe he lets him play with his favorite tennis ball. I honestly don't know, but dude is a little doggy manipulator. Just look at him!

look how guilty he is- just plotting away...

Anyway. If dogs like Sparky can plan their escape from backyard prison, what else can they plan? Whatelseare theyplanningwhilewe'renotlooking? I don't think dogs are as evil as cats, though. Which brings me to another even more important topic:

Cat Conspiracy Theories.

I don't really have any stories about my cat plotting our demise (except for mentioning the 5938472937 times he escaped our apartment, or the time he shredded an entire package of paper towels, or how he knows how to pee in the litter box but somehow always manages to stick his butt over the edge so I have to wipe his poop off the floor [thank goodness for hooded litter boxes], or how he turns on our radio at 4:00 in the morning, or how he won't drink water unless it's fresh, or how he always jumps in the shower, or how he opens bags of cheetos).

He just wants you to think he's innocent...

I've never been a cat person (until Hubby came home and gave me our little bundle of joy one night), but our cat has opposable thumbs, so he's obviously superior. Anyway, I'm pretty sure cats are evil creatures who are planning to take over the world someday. Since my cat thinks he's a dog (he drinks out of the toilet and everything), he won't be part of this plot. Anyone ever seen this picture, though? It's true. Watch your backs, people, because your pets (cats specifically) are out to get you.